It's perhaps inevitable that Keane's debut album, Hopes and Fears, will draw numerous comparisons to Coldplay. Like them, Keane were discovered by indie label Fierce Panda, who released a single ("Everybody's Changing"). And, like Coldplay, Keane also do a fine trade in catchy and heartfelt indie-pop, all bruised verses and soaring choruses. But though their sound is sure to please fans of Coldplay and Travis, the reality is that Keane manage to sound that little bit more delicate. This could be down to the band's relatively unusual make-up: rather than guitars, the trio use a piano. At its best, Hopes and Fears is reminiscent of Bends-era Radiohead and singer Tom Chaplin's voice is closer to Thom Yorke's falsetto then Chris Martin's cracked whine. On tracks such as the hit single "Somewhere Only We Know", they manage to squeeze an epic-sounding poignancy from their stripped-down sound (a lot of this is due to the album's superb production). Across 12 tracks, all this slow-burning melancholy skates a bit close to self-indulgence and you can't help but wish they'd rock out a bit. But Hopes and Fears is still a remarkable and surprisingly mature debut album from a young band with a bright future. -Robert Burrow.

Few bands of the 1960s retained as much a sense of the roots of rock and roll as did Creedence Clearwater Revival. Their music is rife with country, rockabilly, and R&B influences, a combination that produced several hit singles-most of which are present on this collection. These include "I Heard It through the Grapevine," "Lodi," "Up Around the B ," "Who'll Stop the Rain," and of course "Bad Moon Rising. " This is an excellent greatest-hits collection, and a perfect introduction to the music of a band that has been enduringly influential. -Genevieve Williams.

Dylan was virtually gushing great songs when this masterpiece arrived in the summer of 1965. For the epochal opening of "Like a Rolling Stone" through the absurdly apocalyptic closer, "Desolation Row", his command of surrealistic language was daring and amazing. As a vocalist, he was rewriting the rules of the game. Jimi Hendrix made note of Mr Z's technically suspect pitch and decided that he, too was a singer. And the backing, though ragged, is precisely right. Is this the essential Dylan album? It's certainly one of them. -Steven Stolder.

One of the great British bands of the 1960s, the Animals' star has been eclipsed over the years by the likes of the Rolling Stones, the Who and even the retro cultists' favourites, the Yardbirds. This authoritative Best Of serves as a reminder of just how unfair that is. The Animals caught the spirit of the blues and gave it an English force and feel in a way other, equally reverent bands never quite accomplished. Their version of "We've Gotta Get Out Of This Place" sums up the industrial north of its era as well as any John Braine novel, while "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" is an R&B classic to stand proudly with any of its American inspirations. There's plenty to enjoy in many of the less famous tracks, too-"I'm Crying", "Bright Lights Big City", "Baby Let Me Take You Home", the band's take on John Lee Hooker's "Boom Boom". It's true that the Animals never produced the extensive repertoire some of their contemporaries achieved; but that means every bit of their coarse energy has been preserved on this collection. -David Bennun.

Based on the evidence of The Vertigo of Bliss, Ayrshire's Biffy Clyro have matured massively since their debut album, Blackened Sky. While retaining a highly refined melodic sensibility that manifests itself mostly in their effortless vocal harmonies, they've added a metallic heaviness to their sound, and bravely given themselves full range to experiment. The Vertigo of Bliss is never predictable, hardly even stable. Most of the tracks here are in constant flux. Pastoral acoustic guitars, fuzzed bass and sweet strings slip in and out of the mix, leading on to the next folksy interlude, wild jazz break or punky firestorm. One example of this is "With Aplomb", where a pretty acoustic riff is gradually submerged in lush strings and vocal harmonies, before the band engage in a series of brief solos rising to a kind of Elizabethan rock climax recalling Ritchie Blackmore. Elsewhere "Diary of Always" is a bizarre ballad driven by a Laurie Anderson-style vocal pulse, while "Now the Action Is on Fire!" mixes turbulent guitars and staccato strings, like a cross between John Cale and Ozzy Osbourne. This is not to say the album is difficult or messy, rather that great care has been taken to embellish and enliven songs that were already fairly strong, and is an ambitious and intriguing effort. -Dominic Wills.

With her exotic beauty and steamy voice, Sade couldn't help but be a star. Taking the more sensuous elements of island beats, smooth jazz, and R&B, Sade scored major hits with the continental feel of "Smooth Operator" and the sultry stylisation of "Your Love Is King". Her voice was often criticised for being thin, yet she made it work to her advantage with songs like the haunting "Jezebel", on which her delivery added the vulnerability necessary to the song. Sade sounded best when she stuck to the lower register, and there is nothing thin about her dynamic handling of her torch song "Is It a Crime". "The Sweetest Taboo" was one of her last great moments before years of mediocrity, chronicled here by the lifeless "Stronger Than Pride" and the limp "Nothing Can Come Between Us". "No Ordinary Love" was a return to form with the smoky richness back in her vocals and the urban/island feel of her first release. Best of Sade goes right up to her hit "Pearls," which, remixed, became a dance-floor hit. The nicest surprise here is "Please Send Me Someone to Love," with Sade proving that although her range may be limited vocally, she doesn't suffer the same fate artistically. -Steve Gdula.

Probably Def Leppard's best album and certainly their most successful, Hysteria pretty much sums up 1980s hard rock: catchy, tuneful and fun. It's also one of the few albums from the period that doesn't sound dated now, and singles such as "Pour Some Sugar On Me", "Armageddon It" and "Rocket" remain staples of rock radio. The rest of the album is equally entertaining; "Animal" and "Hysteria", while mid-tempo, have the same slick intensity, and "Love Bites" is one of the few pop-metal ballads that doesn't sound saccharine over a decade after its release. -Genevieve Williams.

After making his name with the Jam and then nearly losing it (in some quarters) with the Style Council, Paul Weller reemerged in 1992 with a self-titled album. Since then he's released four studio albums (and one live set, Live Wood); Modern Classics is a democratic collection, choosing three tracks from Paul Weller, four tracks from each of the rest, and adding one new single, "Brand New Start", for good measure. There's not a loser in the lot, but the remarkable thing to note here is the coherence of this collection: Weller's mature rock and love of classic soul has resulted in a sound that's remained remarkably consistent over the course of the 1990s. There's plenty more that could've been included-his cover of "Sexy Sadie" and the touching "Has My Fire Really Gone Out?" just for starters-which simply means there are plenty of reasons to mine his catalog after Modern Classics whets your appetite. -Randy Silver.

Barbra Streisand's bravado made her one of the 1960s' overnight sensations. This 40-cut Essential Collection traces her recording career from early tracks that frequently relay her subtlety to often impressive accommodations with soft rock and still later vibrato-fests that find her taxing the limits of performer's ego and listeners' ears. The narrative is one of direct, sometimes showy, emotion giving way to empty displays of technique. By 1983s icky anthem "A Piece of Sky", Streisand has plowed under the light touches of "Lover, Come Back to Me" and the triumphal Central Park version of "Happy Days Are Here Again". Where she produced schlock masterworks when teamed with Neil Diamond ("You Don't Bring Me Flowers") and Donna Summer ("Enough Is Enough") in the 1970s, a diva summit with Celine Dion led to the car wreck of 1997s "Tell Him". Essential wraps up with previously unreleased takes of "Someday My Prince Will Come" and "You'll Never Walk Alone". -Rickey Wright.

Disintegration is a pop album realised on an epic scale. Most of its 12 songs are long mood pieces that develop slowly around the listener. Anchored by complex drum patterns, the layered guitars, soaring bass lines and rich keyboards blend to create a lush, evocative soundscape that captures the ear immediately; and for all its length, the album is never boring. The lyrical focus is intensely personal throughout, and, with the exception of "Love Song", the mood is overwhelmingly dark and brooding. Here are songs of remembrance that, through their deep candor, transcend the individual level to explore universal longings and fears. Robert Smith, his vocals plaintive or angry or despairing, unfolds a tapestry of loss. Broken bonds, old lies, missed opportunities, belated realisations. Anyone who has experienced the joy and sorrow-especially the sorrow-of love will find his or her deepest sentiments, noble and petty alike, echoed poetically here. -Al Massa.

With a voice like Stevie Wonder, a production sound that recalls the string-laden, slinky-bass disco of Studio 54 and a penchant for funky dance moves and outlandish hats, Jamiroquai's Jay Kay has successfully managed to straddle the underground and mainstream for the best part of 15 years. High Times brings together 19 of his band's hits to date, ranging from early 90s acid jazz classics "When You Gonna Learn", "Too Young To Die" and "Blow Your Mind", to later successes such as "Canned Heat", "Cosmic Girl", "Virtual Insanity" and on to recent songs from 2005 album Dynamite, such as "Feels Just Like It Should" and "7 Days In Sunny June". There are also two new tracks - the current single "Runaway" and the edgier "Radio", both of which continue the Jamiroquai tradition of mildly euphoric dancefloor disco-soul. Despite sticking to a formula of sorts over the years, the songs on this collection compliment each other well and form an impressive overview of one of the UK's most distinctive bands. -Danny McKenna.

Neil Diamond is one of a rare breed. As a songwriter, his music has been covered successfully by artists as diverse as the Monkees, Deep Purple, UB40, and Smash Mouth. But Diamond used that three-chord alchemy to build an unparalleled career as a performer as well. The 38 tracks on these two discs address those interlocking legacies in the most comprehensive manner yet, gathering his material from Bang! Records (including such pop staples as "Solitary Man," "Cherry, Cherry," "Kentucky Woman," "Red, Red Wine," and "I'm a Believer"), Universal (highlighted by "Sweet Caroline," Song Sung Blue," "Holly Holy," and "I Am. I Said"), and Columbia for the first time. And if Diamond has veered toward the middle of the road on those latter recordings (such as "September Morn," "Heartlight," and the Streisand duet "You Don't Bring Me Flowers"), there remains a remarkable consistency throughout his work. As if to underscore the point, a number of mid-period hits (including "Shiloh," "Brother Love's Traveling Salvation Show," and "Soolaimon") are featured as live recordings from fall 2001. These performances show that the sweet roughness of his voice has only grown in power and drama; it's small wonder that Diamond remains one of the top live draws in the business. [+]

Overwhelmed by sudden success, Nirvana promised to take a harsher, more abrasive route on their second major-label release. Enlisting Chicago-based noise maven Steve Albini (of Big Black fame), Kurt Cobain and company succeeded in producing a record that was violent, disillusioned, and deeply moving. Every song reads like a commentary on the cost of fame ("Serve the Servants") and the unhealthy relationship between performer and fan ("Milk It"). Of course, they might all simply be about Courtney Love. Gossip aside, there is no denying the sheer power of Cobain's song-writing, his singing, and the band's amazing, visceral power. Cobain even manages a John Lennon-like mantra at the end of the heart-wrenching "All Apologies". "All in all is all we are," he intones repeatedly, only for Cobain that's no consolation. -Percy Keegan.

Underneath all Christine Aguilera's coy affectations and vocal gymnastics lurks a rare talent. With her second album, Aguilera allows it to flower by abandoning all pretence of courting the teenage market. Stripped is a seemingly effortless move into weightier adult territory. Using her extraordinary voice as a much subtler instrument, Aguilera sings movingly about the disintegration of a relationship with grit and anger, ultimately stronger for the pain. But that's not all that's on her agenda: Aguilera also extols the power of women on "Can't Hold Us Down", which features Lil' Kim. Other guests include Dave Navarro, Redman, ?uestlove and Alicia Keys. Aguilera co-wrote most of the songs on the disc, and produced one cut. She also partnered with former 4 Non Blondes leader and Pink collaborator Linda Perry on four songs, which gives her a rock edge she never possessed before. -Jaan Uhelszki.